Ohio prepares to execute condemned killer of 2

COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) -- A man convicted in the slayings of his estranged wife and brother-in-law at a Cleveland courthouse was moved Tuesday to the southern Ohio prison where he was scheduled to be executed in less than 24 hours.

If put to death, Abdul Awkal would be the second man Ohio executes this year since the end of an unofficial moratorium on capital punishment that lasted six months.

The Ohio Supreme Court was considering Awkal's request to delay the execution to allow a hearing about his mental competency. The state opposes a delay.

Abdul Awkal's mental health has been the subject of court hearings for years, and a Cuyahoga County judge ruled Monday that there was enough evidence that Awkal was insane to justify a hearing about his competency.

Awkal's attorneys say a delay is necessary to conduct a proper court hearing on Awkal's competency before Wednesday's execution.

The state opposes the request, and both Gov. John Kasich and the Ohio Parole Board rejected Awkal's request for mercy based on his mental health allegations.

Cuyahoga County Prosecutor Bill Mason said Awkal is unlikely to win his argument in court, a delay at this stage is unnecessary and the request isn't fair to the surviving family members of Awkal's victims.

The Ohio Parole Board voted 8-1 last month against recommending mercy, with most members concluding that Awkal planned the shooting and that it wasn't the result of a psychotic breakdown.

While he had asserted remorse, "he clearly blames the victims for allegedly creating the circumstances that forced him to kill them," the board said on May 18.

Awkal was sentenced to death for killing his estranged wife, Latife Awkal, and brother-in-law Mahmoud Abdul-Aziz in January 1992 in a room where the Awkals were to take up divorce and custody issues.

In the months before the shooting, Awkal bought a pistol and threated to kill his wife and her family if they didn't dismiss the divorce proceedings. Prosecutors said Awkal also changed his address and wrote his brother a check for most of his assets before heading to court on the day of the shooting.

___

Andrew Welsh-Huggins can be reached at http://twitter.com/awhcolumbus.